MATCH REPORT: Workington AFC 1-2 Whitby Town
“We are not in a good place at the moment,” is probably the understatement of the season but the message Billy Barr was trying to get across was, that despite the list of absentees now into double figures, the senior players left in the team have hit a poor run of form.
“Other sides are desperate to play us at the moment because we are not the team we want to be, not the team we were a fortnight ago. But there will be no sympathy, and we have to stop feeling sorry for ourselves and battle our way out of this crisis.”
Tough words from a manager, who has backed his players to the hilt, responding to a passive Reds’ performance against a Town team who were struggling a little themselves until Graeme Lee’s arrival.
And having spent every available minute assembling a team for this game, the Reds boss will have to go through it all again ahead of Saturday’s trip to Bamber Bridge.
Were there any positives to take out of this game which ended, in Reds’ second home defeat of the season?
First of all, it was a much better showing than the weekend display at Quorn, there was an impressive NPL debut from Zach Martin (inset), the two seventeen-year-olds, Ted Thomson and TJ Cueto, delivered encouraging cameos from the bench and Luke Hunter got back on the goal trail.
But, after that, not much to enthuse over.
It might have been different had they got to half-time level but to concede with the last passage of play, in an even first half, completely changed the dynamics of the coast-to-coast ‘derby’!
The Seasiders defended deep and attacked at speed and Workington were outdone by an unchecked run through the middle, a decent cross and a free header, although Danny Eccles was well positioned to save Stuart Rose’s effort until Charlie Barnes deflected the ball into the opposite corner of the net.
Had Reds looked like scoring in that opening forty-five minutes? Not really. Dan Hopper forced Oliver Swan into two routine saves from distance with Joe Phuthi’s well struck shot dealt with by Eccles at the other end.
And before Reds could plan a route back into the game, Whitby doubled their lead to effectively secure the points.
Steven Rigg had done his praiseworthy stint and was replaced by Tom Stephenson, back sooner than expected from the treatment room.
But it was the visitors who netted that crucial second goal in the fifty-seventh minute. The lively Marley Grant had been thwarted by a superb Eccles save but Reds were unable to clear the danger and when Grant was given a second opportunity to put Graeme Lee’s side in control, he duly accepted the gift.
And then the pendulum swung in Workington’s favour and two sweetly struck shots from Brennan Dickenson inspired signs of a comeback. His first effort just cleared the bar, the second was well gathered by Swan but it woke the home fans from their slumbers.
For the first time in the game, Whitby’s defenders had to defend and they looked more ragged than they had previously. But it was diluted pressure from Reds and the ‘one-pass-too-many around the box’ method wasn’t working.
It took a more direct route to reduce the arrears with Eccles’ long clearance flicked on by Dickenson and Luke Hunter coming to life with a subtle lob over the ‘keeper to bag his eleventh goal of the season.
But it was too little, too late and Whitby, who pieced together a decent record at Borough Park over the years, continued the good work at the Fibrus by comfortably holding out for the win.
Workington: Eccles, Rigby, Whitehall, Ellis, Martin, Barnes, Jacobs (Thomson, 46), Hopper (Cueto, 58), Rigg (Stephenson, 55), Dickenson, Hunter. Substitutes – Routledge, Pickering L (not used).
Whitby Town: Swan, Stirland, Hewitt, Dillon, Hodgson, Barnes, Phuti (Dowson, 85), Kay, Rose (Reed, 90), Hickman (Parker, 78), Grant. Substitutes – Kilpatrick, Scaife (not used).
Referee: Chris Porter, Preston
Booking: Dickenson (Workington)
Attendance: 582
